A BALB/c mouse model for assessing the potential allergenicity of proteins: comparison of allergen dose, sensitization frequency, timepoint and sex.

The present study was to investigate the possibility of using the BALB/c mouse as an animal model for assessing the potential allergenicity of proteins. Specific IgE and IgG1 against ovalbumin were induced by dosing BALB/c mice via intraperitoneal injection (absence of adjuvant). The effects of various allergen doses (5 mg, 0.5 mg or 0.05 mg OVA), sensitization times (twice or five times), timepoints (day 14 or day 28) and sex (male or female) were studied. IL-4, IFN-γ, OVA-specific IgE and IgG1 were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). A general finding was that mice treated with 0.05 mg OVA had the highest OVA-specific IgE and IgG1, statistically significant higher specific IgE and IgG1 were observed in groups sensitized five times than twice, OVA-specific IgE and IgG1 on day 28 were statistically higher than day 14, and higher IL-4 was observed in OVA-allergic mice than control mice. These results demonstrate that the BALB/c mouse model treated with 0.05 mg OVA intraperitoneally on days 0, 3, 6, 9, 12 might be used for further experiments. OVA-specific IgE and IgG1 should be detected on day 28. Further studies including reproducibility and other conditions were required before using the BALB/c mouse model for assessing the potential allergenicity of proteins.